Dental Hygiene Commons^™

Got Caries? Breast Milk And Early Childhood Caries?, Megan L. Dean, Rebecca Fields, Hannah Fritz

Dental Hygiene Student Scholarship

Objective: To provide an analysis of the association between the longevity of breastfeeding and development of ECC. Determine the optimal time frame in which mothers should cease breastfeeding to reduce ECC development. Methods: Dr. Brickhouse, PubMed, Google Scholar and other scholarly databases were utilized to find current scientific evidence on the effects of breast milk on ECC. Relevant articles were summarized to write a review of literature. 16 articles published from 2015 to the present date were reviewed and cited. Results: From the studies, there is strong evidence to support breastfeeding beyond 12 months of age increases the prevalence …

Would You Recognize Lupus?, Sydney C. Smith, Maegan Simms, Barbara Brown

Dental Hygiene Student Scholarship

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, or SLE, is a chronic autoimmune disease which significantly affects various organs of the body and the oral cavity. According to various studies, SLE can cause an increased risk of periodontitis, fungal infections, and dental caries within the oral cavity. Periodontitis is an inflammatory condition mediated by an infectious etiology which affects the supporting tissues of the periodontium and alveolar bone. With SLE being an inflammatory condition as well, recent studies have emerged hypothesizing the possible association between SLE and periodontitis. Other effects on the oral cavity such as fungal infections including lichen planus and angular cheilitis …

Oral Aversion And Your Child's Dental Health Brochure And Handout, Gretchen Clavey

A with Honors Projects

For this A with Honors project, the student created a a caregiver brochure and a healthcare provider fact sheet to address dental healthcare concerns for children with oral aversion issues.

Perceptions And Attitudes Of Healthcare Students Towards Marijuana, Carrie Crosby

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

Perceptions of marijuana were studied in healthcare students at EWU. It was found that most students had an average self-reported knowledge of marijuana use. Marijuana comes in several forms such as, edibles, smoked, patches, and lotions. With its recent legalization in Washington State, sales tax alone has accumulated $400 million dollars in the past 3 years. With this increase in use an examination of healthcare students was warranted. Most students also felt there was a need for more education on marijuana and that their current knowledge level was not enough to be competent when talking with patients about use. Overall, …

Endoscope Use To Improve Students’ Periodontal Debridement Skills And Self-Efficacy, Sandra J. Walker

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

Purpose: The primary aim of this study was to determine if using the dental endoscope altered dental hygienists’ perception of periodontal disease, changed their instrumentation skills, helped increase self-efficacy, and if multiple uses had an effect on participants’ self-efficacy in debridement skills. Methods: This mixed-method convenient sample study included dental hygienists (N = 34) recruited from Eastern Washington University Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene or Master of Science in Dental Hygiene Program. EWU Alumni with at least one experience using the dental endoscope during patient care completed an anonymous self-efficacy survey through SurveyMonkey®. The survey included seven demographic questions, …

The Lasting Impact Of Intraprofessional Education Between Dentists And Dental Hygienists, Kimber Satter

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

Purpose: The Regional Initiatives in Dental Education (RIDE) program at the University of Washington (UW) allows first year dental students to take courses with Eastern Washington University dental hygiene (DH) students. This study was conducted to see if the RIDE program is effective as an Intraprofessional Education (IntraPE) program in improving dentists’ attitudes towards teamwork and understanding the roles and responsibilities of the DH.

Methods: UW School of Dentistry alumni from 2012-2017 were invited to participate in this study. Attitudes towards teamwork and roles and responsibilities were assessed using two online surveys: a demographic survey containing open-ended questions, and a …

Exploring Student-Led Interprofessional Education Through A Community Service Project, Lindsay Ann Doerschuk

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

Purpose: The purpose of this research was to explore the effectiveness of a student-led interprofessional education (IPE) workshop in improving student attitudes and perceptions toward IPE. Students from four health science programs including Dental Hygiene, Communication Sciences and Disorders/Speech and Hearing, Health Services Administration and Occupational Therapy participated in a community service event. Students provided screenings to veteran patients including a health history intake, hearing test, and sleep screening while other students observed.

Methods: Students were asked to attend an orientation, the Vets Day IPE workshop, and a debrief session. This mixed methods approach study utilized the Readiness for Interprofessional …

Workplace Bullying: A Survey Of Virginia Dental Hygienists, Gayle B. Mccombs, S. Lynn Tolle, Tara L. Newcomb, Ann M. Bruhn, Amber W. Hunt, Lanah K. Stafford

Dental Hygiene Faculty Publications

Purpose: Workplace bullying in health care has been identified as a problem that negatively affects career satisfaction, career longevity and patient outcomes. The purpose of this pilot study was to determine the prevalence of workplace bullying in a convenience sample of dental hygienists in the state of Virginia.

Methods: Two hundred and forty Virginia dental hygienists attending a continuing education seminar were invited to participate. Using the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R), respondents were asked to indicate how often they had experienced 22 negative acts or behaviors according to rate of occurrence (never, now and then or monthly, weekly or …

A Systematic Review On The Validity Of Teledentistry, Jafar H. Alabdullah, Susan J. Daniel

Dental Hygiene Faculty Publications

Objectives: The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the validity of using teledentistry in oral care examination and diagnosis.

Methods: In June 2016, a systematic search of the literature was conducted without time restrictions in three electronic databases (Ebscohost, Pubmed, and Scopus). Two reviewers screened the retrieved articles first by title and then by abstract to determine relevant articles for full text review. Studies included were as follows: (1) related to teledentistry, (2) available in full text and English, (3) compared teledentistry application to a gold standard, and (4) provided clear statistical tests for validity. The methodological …

A Survey Of Dental Hygiene Program Directors: Curriculum Development And Implementation For The Dental Hygiene-Based Dental Therapist, Heidi Desmarais

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

Purpose: This study used a survey of program directors and program chairs to analyze relationships related to curriculum development for a dental hygiene-based dental therapist and the question of how external variables affect allied health workforce development and implementation.

Methods: A survey instrument was utilized to help identify the relationship between a dental hygiene-based dental therapist curriculum and the external influences of future needs of the dental hygiene profession and workforce; external influences; and institutional influences on curriculum design and implementation using Spearman’s rho testing. The open-ended question was studied through the application of grounded theory analysis. (N=340).

Results: Upon …

Efficacy Of Brushing With Probiotics For The Reduction Of Gingivitis, Cheri L. Barton

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

Purpose: The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of brushing with the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri on plaque accumulation and gingival inflammation. This study included 34 healthy adult subjects, ages 18-65, exhibiting gingivitis. Participants were asked to participate in a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled study testing whether brushing with L. reuteri probiotic drops added to toothpaste reduced the clinical parameters of gingivitis more than brushing with a placebo drop added to toothpaste.

Methods: Biological measurements of plaque accumulation were recorded using disclosing solution and an O’Leary Plaque Score (PS), and gingival inflammation was recorded using a modified …